[oleolsen]

I am considering to order a Pentax camera from the US to save some money and was wondering about the status of the warranty in such a case.
For this I googled a bit and found some posts here discussing the old international warranty program but not much more recent information. I also checked the part of the Pentax website that covers warranties and stuff and found this sentence:

"...Any PENTAX which proves defective during the 12-month warranty period should be returned to the dealer from whom you purchased the equipment or to the manufacturer. If there are no representatives of the manufacturer in your country, send the equipment to the manufacturer, with postage prepaid.."
Warranty policy - RICOH IMAGING UK LTD.

As I understand that, I can order a camera from the US and send it, if needed, to the local (Swedish) representative that handles all the repairs and claims and only need to cover the shipping.

The reason I am posting this is because I am not sure if I understand this correctly (it states the same information in Swedish on the Swedish website) and wonder if someone might have some experience that may or may not support my understanding/interpretation.

[Adam]

I am considering to order a Pentax camera from the US to save some money and was wondering about the status of the warranty in such a case.
For this I googled a bit and found some posts here discussing the old international warranty program but not much more recent information. I also checked the part of the Pentax website that covers warranties and stuff and found this sentence:

"...Any PENTAX which proves defective during the 12-month warranty period should be returned to the dealer from whom you purchased the equipment or to the manufacturer. If there are no representatives of the manufacturer in your country, send the equipment to the manufacturer, with postage prepaid.."
Warranty policy - RICOH IMAGING UK LTD.

As I understand that, I can order a camera from the US and send it, if needed, to the local (Swedish) representative that handles all the repairs and claims and only need to cover the shipping.

The reason I am posting this is because I am not sure if I understand this correctly (it states the same information in Swedish on the Swedish website) and wonder if someone might have some experience that may or may not support my understanding/interpretation.

Generally speaking, you can only receive warranty service in the country or region in which you purchased the camera; international warranties are no more.

So if you needed service, you could send the camera back to the US (with the help of somebody who lives there) for free service, or get it serviced in Europe at cost.

The rules might be a bit more lenient in Europe (i.e. if you purchased in one EU country you might be able to get service in another), but you should contact your local Ricoh Imaging representative to clarify this.

[alamo5000]

Do you have any friends or contacts in the US? Why not register it under their information for warranty purposes and problem solved.

[oleolsen]

Thanks for the replies!

Generally speaking, you can only receive warranty service in the country or region in which you purchased the camera; international warranties are no more.

So if you needed service, you could send the camera back to the US (with the help of somebody who lives there) for free service, or get it serviced in Europe at cost.

The rules might be a bit more lenient in Europe (i.e. if you purchased in one EU country you might be able to get service in another), but you should contact your local Ricoh Imaging representative to clarify this.

This is pretty much how I expected the warranty to be, but then I read the stuff on their website and it confused me a bit. it doesn't say anywhere that the warranty is based on any location (place of purchase or warranty usage) or their local representatives. That's what I don't really get. Maybe I am just dense but does it say anywhere that it needs to be repaired in the same country it was bought?

Do you have any friends or contacts in the US? Why not register it under their information for warranty purposes and problem solved.

No, I don't. Just some colleagues. But if the worst case happens I would still have to spend a fortune to send it to the US and back and kinda lose the savings on that. Just FYI: one time shipping is 500 swedish crowns (60 dollars) with the saving being around 2,500 crowns.

[Adam]

This is pretty much how I expected the warranty to be, but then I read the stuff on their website and it confused me a bit. it doesn't say anywhere that the warranty is based on any location (place of purchase or warranty usage) or their local representatives. That's what I don't really get. Maybe I am just dense but does it say anywhere that it needs to be repaired in the same country it was bought?

I wouldn't trust anything written on a Pentax/Ricoh web site. The information could be dated or innacurate. With respect to US extended warranties, customer service, the web site, and printed paperwork all stated different terms last year.

No, I don't. Just some colleagues. But if the worst case happens I would still have to spend a fortune to send it to the US and back and kinda lose the savings on that. Just FYI: one time shipping is 500 swedish crowns (60 dollars) with the saving being around 2,500 crowns.

The US service center won't ship it back to an address outside of the US AFAIK. But if your savings are that high, I would just go ahead and pretend it's a grey market import and perhaps purchase an extended third-party warranty locally.

[oleolsen]

I wouldn't trust anything written on a Pentax/Ricoh web site. The information could be dated or innacurate. With respect to US extended warranties, customer service, the web site, and printed paperwork all stated different terms last year.

Ah, damn. Atleast I know now that it is not this way.

The US service center won't ship it back to an address outside of the US AFAIK. But if your savings are that high, I would just go ahead and pretend it's a grey market import and perhaps purchase an extended third-party warranty locally.

The savings might actually be higher (>400USD if I buy it in Sweden, 220 USD if I buy it in Germany). I didn't even know that third-party warranty was a thing. Do you know any companies that offer that service, preferably in the EU? I only found Mackcam so far and they seem to fit. Also, do you know in what price range a one or two year warranty would be?

[Adam]

The savings might actually be higher (>400USD if I buy it in Sweden, 220 USD if I buy it in Germany). I didn't even know that third-party warranty was a thing. Do you know any companies that offer that service, preferably in the EU? I only found Mackcam so far and they seem to fit. Also, do you know in what price range a one or two year warranty would be?

I don't know of any in Europe, but I'm sure they exist. In the US 3-year protection plans (which include drops & spills) generally cost 10-15% of the camera's purchase price.

Let's say you were buying a K-3- a third-party warranty for it in the US would be $70, less than a fifth of your savings.

Adam
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[stevebrot]

international warranties are no more.

Are you sure about that, Adam? When last I researched this, Ricoh was offering a warranty of last resort available by shipping to Japan. Below is a snippet from the K-3II User Guide with pertinent sections highlighted.



I take this to mean that if the local seller, agent, or distributor does not honor the warranty, the manufacturer is still bound and will provide the repair for free, though all shipping and cross-border fees are the responsibility of the sender.


Steve

[Adam]

Are you sure about that, Adam? When last I researched this, Ricoh was offering a warranty of last resort available by shipping to Japan. Below is a snippet from the K-3II User Guide with pertinent sections highlighted.

Attachment 282825

I take this to mean that if the local seller, agent, or distributor does not honor the warranty, the manufacturer is still bound and will provide the repair for free, though all shipping and cross-border fees are the responsibility of the sender.


Steve

This is why I advised the OP to contact his local distributor for more information on what is and isn't covered. But the text provides no implication of international warranty- coverage/service in your country for products purchased elsewhere. What would be covered is if there is no service center in your country.

Also, US dealers are authorized to sell in the US, so whether or not importing is considered "authorized" is also up to interpretation. Once again, warranty coverage is at the discretion of the manufacturer and thus reaching out to a representative would be the best course of action.

[stevebrot]

But the text provides no implication of international warranty- coverage/service in your country for products purchased elsewhere. What would be covered is if there is no service center in your country.

I believe it is covered in the sentence that begins, "Notwithstanding this..." where it says that the manufacturer (Ricoh) will repair. The local distributor may freely tailor what they choose to cover at their option, but that does not negate the manufacturer's stated remedy.

As you mentioned, the information published on the various Ricoh/Pentax regional Web sites is often confusing and many appear to be out of date. The current Ricoh U.S. Web site contains no repair or warranty information at all beyond providing a link to Precision Camera for repair. The wayback machine's cached copy from a 5 Aug 2015 scan (last date changed, 5 April 2015) may be viewed at:

https://web.archive.org/web/20150405035909/http://us.ricoh-imaging.com/suppo...ty-information

I believe a reasonable flow might go something like:

• If recently purchased, contact your seller
• If no remedy, contact the Ricoh/Pentax distributor for your region
• If no remedy, contact Ricoh Japan

Depending on where the camera is currently located and from where it was originally purchased, be prepared to bear shipping and border expenses both directions. Also be prepared for the process to take longer than you might have anticipated. Getting things across a border is often not easy.*


Steve

* I once waited almost two months for a lens to clear out-bound customs from Russian...go figure...

[oleolsen]

I don't know of any in Europe, but I'm sure they exist. In the US 3-year protection plans (which include drops & spills) generally cost 10-15% of the camera's purchase price.

Let's say you were buying a K-3- a third-party warranty for it in the US would be $70, less than a fifth of your savings.

10-15% would still make it a good deal. I have to see what Mackcam says their prices are.

This is why I advised the OP to contact his local distributor for more information on what is and isn't covered. But the text provides no implication of international warranty- coverage/service in your country for products purchased elsewhere. What would be covered is if there is no service center in your country.

I did contact them and their response was "there is no international warranty with Pentax".

Also, US dealers are authorized to sell in the US, so whether or not importing is considered "authorized" is also up to interpretation. Once again, warranty coverage is at the discretion of the manufacturer and thus reaching out to a representative would be the best course of action.

That is a really good point.

I believe it is covered in the sentence that begins, "Notwithstanding this..." where it says that the manufacturer (Ricoh) will repair. The local distributor may freely tailor what they choose to cover at their option, but that does not negate the manufacturer's stated remedy.

I read and understood it the same way. It's pretty bad of Pentax that you actually have to go to a forum to discuss their warranty statements to try to understand them.

Depending on where the camera is currently located and from where it was originally purchased, be prepared to bear shipping and border expenses both directions. Also be prepared for the process to take longer than you might have anticipated. Getting things across a border is often not easy.*


Steve

Yeah, I guess you are right with that. As long as someone is willing to ship their camera to Japan, you can get it repaired by Pentax. But I will try to avoid those toll and transport costs by purchasing an international warranty.